Beyond the Titans
by tropicana-e
Summary: What I think life was like for some of the Titans after practices, Coach Boone, and football games. Beyond what we saw in the movie.
1. Chapter 1

_A/N_: This will be my first story posted in about a year, so please forgive me if I'm a little rusty. Also, I do have a knack for starting stories and not finishing them, I'll apologize in advance for that. You can read my profile for more info on that because I could use some help, and definitely a beta-reader for this fic.

**Disclaimer**:Sorry, I don't own Remember The Titans or the characters, but I do own the ones that you've never heard of, because I made them up.

Summary: This story is a look into the slightly minor characters of RTT; Alan, Sunshine and Rev. Beyond football madness and into their more personal lives outside and inside of the team after the stadium lights shut off every week. Each one is an OC pairing.

**Beyond The Titans**

Alan hung back at the end of the train of football players as they practically stumbled over themselves to finally get into the locker room. As the last one in, he knew he was going to have to wait for a while until any shower room was available so he just pulled his soaked jersey from his equally drenched back and relieved his self from his shoulder pads. Solemn faces tainted the entire place, he ended up noticing. It had been a while since the guys had been this quiet in the locker room. He grunted and slumped onto the bench closest to his locker, choosing for now to just observe everyone else.

Tensions were bound to be high today. Alan knew it, just like everyone else. This had been their first in-school practice of the year, and they had been desegregated for a week. The previous five days were challenging to say the least. Contrary to everyone's beliefs, the boycotts and picketing did not stop the first day of school. In fact, Alan wouldn't be surprised if they happened to show up again the next week. Death threats were made to teachers, guidance counsilors, and principals alike. Parents threatened to move their children to avoid intergration, and some students simply dropped out on their own. Inside the walls of T.C. Williams was no different. Fights broke out almost after every class, people said things under their breaths, someone had even managed set off the fire alarm in an attempt to temporarily shut down the school.

It didn't even stop with interracial conflicts. He had seen that just the day before in the scramble with Gerry and Julius. Both the blacks and the whites would turn on their own kind easily if one showed any sign of tolerance for the other. Animosity flooded the streets of Alexandria, and students were getting the brunt of it. And of course Coach Boone only saw this as an excuse to push them harder during practice. Alan Bosely was both physically and mentally drained. And it bugged him to see he wasn't the only one.

"So...this is what integration is like," He rubbed his hands together as he finally spoke. "Hm." He smiled briefly to himself before looking around to everyone else. There was no response except for a few glances, for a while. But he heard Julius chuckle. The quiet actually seemed to grow after Julius began to laugh heartily, but he continued, clutching his stomach until Bertier couldn't help but laugh with him. Alan looked at them both confused, but smiled anyway. It wasn't long at all before there was a complete uproar of laughter from everyone on the team. When it did eventually die down, the tension had eased some.

"What were we just laughin' at?" Someone finally managed to ask. Julius' expression flipped completely, and he just shook his head. It was a while before he spoke. Alan assumed he was trying to find words.

"All these years, this's what we been fightin' for," He finally spoke. He managed to stretch a pitiful smile across his mouth. "All this...it ain't what I expected."

"It ain't what _none_ of us expected, man." Blue agreed. "...Just don't make no sense." He added disgustedly. Alan was struck dumb. He had never seen Blue upset before. Not even at camp. His heart started to sink. If all this could get Blue down, what kind of hope was there. He didn't even notice that Petey had joined the conversation.

"What is yall talkin' about?" All eyes were averted to him at this point. Petey was known for his bad temper, and usually _did_ have to always put his two cents in, but no one thought he would go as far as to agree with what had surfaced in the past week. "Yall think the whole world gon' be like us? What, the world gonna change just cause we did?" He looked around, as if he really expected an answer. But everyone was taken aback with him by then. "Look, camp is over.", he continued. "I say we all just go ahead and get used to it."

"Petey's got a point fellas." Gerry sighed, plopping down on the bench next to Alan. "I mean, camp was different. This just crazy. It's not gonna change. People ain't gonna listen to anythin' we have to say." He looked up guiltily at his team. "He might be right." He said lower.

"No, Gerry. No he isn't." Sunshine cut in. He couldn't believe any of this. Other people were other people but the fact that his teammates were letting everyone else get to them felt like a slap in his face.

"Yeah, if we could come together at camp, why _can't_ everyone else?" Louie backed Sunshine.

"They can." Rev finally spoke up. Alan was waiting for him to chime in. Arguments always ended on a more positive note with Rev. "_We_ can. The good lord God made us _all_ in his image. They'll know it sooner or later. We just gotta set the example until then. With _his_ help."

The quiet resurfaced pretty quickly after that. There just wasn't any argueing with Jerry Harris. Alan looked around. There were eyes cast down in shame, up in faith and wonder, and closed in dismay. They all must have been thinking the same thing as him, he figured.

_How would they make it through._

"This week." Alan spoke again. He tried to ignore the shaking in his voice. There was no explaining what he, or any of them had gone through in the past few days. Through those few months at Gettysburg they had come across revelations beyond what any of them had experienced before. They had learned to look beyond color and see into one's character, and respect eachother as men. But now that he was back home, it was as if he were suffocated within himself. His father had been on the verge of beating him sensless when he had come home with stories of Jerry or Petey and Julius. The people he had been close to his entire school life changed over night once they found that he had made friends with 'them'. By Tuesday he had become an outcast, and it was slowly ripping his heart open. The true colors of everyone were beginning to show, and he could confide in almost no one but himself. He was almost to the point of breaking and he hadn't known it until then. He tried to laugh again, but it was grim and bitter. "It was a bad week." He swallowed hard at the painful lump swelling in his throat. "It...was a horrible week." He closed his eyes when someone's hand landed heavily on his shoulder.

"It'll get better." Rev answered him. And everyone.

**TBC**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer**:Sorry, I don't own Remember The Titans or the characters, but I do own the ones that you've never heard of, because I made them up.

Summary: This story is a look into the slightly minor characters of RTT; Alan, Sunshine and Rev. Beyond football madness and into their more personal lives outside and inside of the team after the stadium lights shut off every week. Each one is an OC pairing.

**Beyond The Titans**

Jerry was completely exhausted when he arrived home. "Grandma?" He called into the seemingly empty house.

"I'm here, baby." She answered from the kitchen. Rev set his things down and poked his head in the doorway. He smiled, seeing her get an early start on dinner. Mrs. Eulah Harris was a short, plump woman of her late sixties. She was a mother of five, grandmother of nine, and the love of Jerry Harris' life. He stood next to her, looking into the various steaming pots and pans and kissing her on the temple.

"Hey, grandma."

"Hi, baby. How was school?" Jerry reached into the refrigerator and made himself a glass of ice water.

"It was okay." He answered, sitting at the kitchen table. "They ain't protesting as much."

"Don't you worry none about them folks, Jeremiah. Soon as they find somethin' else to fuss over, they'll let yall be."

"I hope you're right." He sighed.

"That girl Tonya called." She said, attempting to lighten up his blatantly solemn mood.

"I'll call her later, grandma."

"But she called you _today_, baby." She answered, joining him at the table. "You should talk to her, Jerry, she's such a sweet baby." She said, pinching Rev's cheek.

He laughed. He knew she was lying. Eulah Harris never thought any girl was good enough for Jerry. That especially proved true when he started high school and the football team. But, more importantly, she also hated to see him upset and would do anything to change it.

"Did your father bring that bag of rice when he came in?"

Rev chuckled again. "Gra'ma, dad left two days go, remember? He's at a revival at Langley Baptist with mom." Eulah smiled, shaking her head lightly.

"Yes, I remember, baby. You hungry?" She asked, standing from the table, and returning to the stove.

"Yes, _ma'am_!" he nearly yelled.

"Then go upstairs and change outta them school clothes, gra'ma will fix you a plate." Jerry wasted no time running upstairs and showering quickly. He hurried back down, dressed in his house attire, and was all to happy to see a plate of smothered chicken in front of him. Eulah couldn't help but laugh seeing him inhale the meal.

"Is it good, baby?" She chuckled.

"Mhmm." He answered with his mouth entirely full.

"I just wish your daddy would hurry and get back with my rice." She said, stepping to the living room to peek through the blinds for Reverend Harris' car. Rev looked up as she reentered, swallowing slowly as his grandmother smiled at him.

"What is it, baby?" She asked, sitting back down next to him.

"Granny…" Jerry said, putting his fork down, "Dad is gone, he's in Langley."

"Oh." She said, stroking his hair. "You know my memory ain't too good, Jeremiah."

"But I just told you—" he began to say as the phone rang. He stood from the table and exited to the living room.

"Hello? Oh hey, Louie. Listen, can we postpone tonight? I think I should stay home. You sure? Good, thanks, I'll see you next week." She listened to her grandson on the phone. He hung up and sat back down, pulling his chair up.

"Who was that?" She asked.

"Oh, just a friend that I tutor."

"Well what you stayin' home for then, Jerry, if he need tutorin'?"

"I just thought I'd stay and… look after you for a while." He smiled as she let out a laugh.

"Well baby, I can take care of myself. I don't need no lookin' after." She assured him softly, placing a hand on his.

"Well… I just want to spend some time with my favorite lady." He said smiling. She grinned back at him and his heart glowed, all the while a strange flow of doubt began to course through him.

**TBC**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer**: Sorry, I don't own Remember the Titans or the characters, but I do own the ones that you've never heard of, because I made them up.

Summary: This story is a look into the slightly minor characters of RTT; Alan, Sunshine and Rev. Beyond football madness and into their more personal lives outside and inside of the team after the stadium lights shut off every week. Each one is an OC pairing.

**Beyond The Titans**

Ronnie Bass left practice fuming. He didn't say a word to any of his teammates as he exited, nor did he answer Coach Yoast when he called after him. But amidst all of his anger, he remembered that he had no ride home.

He reentered the school, which had been closed for more than two hours, to look for a phone where he could contact a possible ride. His eyes quickly fell on the bookkeeper's office, and he knocked on the door. A petite, elderly woman opened the door, looking almost as upset as him.

"Can I help you, young man?" She barked.

"Do you have a phone I could use, ma'am?" Sunshine asked as politely as he could. She took a while, but stepped back, letting him in.

"Thank you." He mumbled quietly before dialing.

"Hello? Hey, Pop." He said when his father answered the phone. "Do you think you can pick me up from the school?" He paused. "Ok, thanks." He hung up the phone and thanked the bookkeeper again before exiting. Closing the door behind him, he did not even take a full stride before slamming into someone. Papers flew everywhere and he began to gather them immediately.

"Sorry about that." He said, handing the papers back to them. He looked up when she laughed and smiled back at her. She looked familiar, and his eyes locked with hers as he handed her the last few folders. She grabbed the last few and stood over him, smiling confusedly.

"It's okay. Just watch where you're heading next time."

Sunshine brushed hi pants off before standing.

"I'm Ronnie." He said, holding his hand out. She smirked, staring at his hand and back up at him.

"Oh I _know_ who you are." She answered. The blonde dropped his arm, more flattered than confused. "Nice meetin' you, Sunshine." She said before brushing past him. He stared after her, his curiosity now sparked. This managed to plant a seed in the California native. But a loud honk behind him caught his attention and, seeing that it was his father outside, he jogged out of the door and to the car and climbed in.

"So how's it going?" His father asked, pulling off.

"What, school?" Sunshine shrugged. "It's Virginia for sure." He answered, grumbling the last part.

"Hey. What did I tell you about that attitude?"

"It's not the moving pop, I'm over that. I can handle the moving."

"Then what's the problem?" His father asked sternly.

"The people! This entire place is so … divided, it's… unbelievable!"

"Well we're not in California anymore, Ronnie; we're on the complete opposite side of the country. Things are different here. It's the region."

"Ok I can understand that, _maybe_ with the older people but, Pop, even kids _my_ age are like that. Kids _younger_ than me! Cut me a little slack, please." Sunshine's eyebrows creased. The entire conversation was making him even more furious. "You sound just like—ugh." He shook hi head, dismissing the entire thing.

His father sounded just like Gerry and Petey. He was on the verge of tearing the entire locker room apart when Gerry put in his pathetic two-bits worth in after practice. They had gone through hell and back coming together themselves as a team, showing their vulnerabilities and insecurities; letting all their guards down to become a unit.

Then just like that, it was shattered. It had taken only a week, and it was as if the past months never happened. He'd never seen anyone so affected by other people, and in such a way. And now that it was engulfing his entire life, he was completely on edge.

"Look Ronnie." His father sighed. His tone was softer now, seeing how much this was hurting his son, "I know how it feels. I know. I've seen a lot of it in my day. Seen worse even. But I learned to just ignore it. Avoid it when I can. That's why I sent you to T.C. Williams. You know what's right; you'll learn to ignore it too."

"No!" Sunshine yelled, slamming his fists on the dashboard so hard his father was forced to break. "I'm not!" He yelled, staring straight into his father's eyes. "I'm not gonna just sit here and ignore it! I _can't_ believe you just said that."

"Son—"

"I'm gonna walk home." Sunshine cut him off, climbing out of the car and slamming the door behind him. The Colonel looked after him, but knew not to push his son any further than he already had. He pulled off and left Sunshine to walk.

* * *

Ronnie could feel the steam rolling off of his head. His peace had completely left him; he couldn't even hear any of the girls melting over him or the many random guys jabbing at him. This was the angriest he'd even been at his father. He couldn't believe that that was his solution: just ignore it. His father had never been so passive. If there was thing Ronnie Bass hated, it was passive people. People who molded themselves to society, who blindly followed and never questioned who or what was leading. He would never in his life become one of those people. Hearing his father speak like that was even more of a gut-punch then his teammates had been.

After he'd calmed slightly, he found that he'd stumbled into the community park. There weren't many people, and a few children. The mood was perfectly calm. He figured he needed an hour or two by himself to cool down and sat against a tree to try and meditate. He closed his eyes and began to slow his breathing. His concentration was broken when something tapped his chest. He looked down, it was a Frisbee. He picked it up just as a small child ran up to him she beamed at him. Sunshine figured she couldn't have been more than six. He smiled back at her and handed her the toy, chuckling when she ran off back to her mother, but his grin faded fairly quickly, knowing that her innocence would be taken from her entirely too soon by the people of this city. He sighed, and ran his fingers through his hair

_

* * *

  
_

Sunshine didn't get home until it was almost dark. And his father jumped up when he came through the door.

"Son—"

"I'm okay, pop." He cut his father off before he could finish, starting off to his room.

"Wait, Ron." He stopped and turned to face him. "Sit down, I wanna talk to you," He didn't question him and sat in the couch across from him.

"You've been gone for a while." Sunshine sat up.

"I know, Pop, I ju—"his father stopped him, raising his hand.

"Let me finish." He said, clasping his hands together between his knees. "Do you know why I joined the service?" He asked weakly. The young blonde only sat there, shaking his head dumbly.

"Well I'm gonna tell you. I was still living in Louisiana when I as your age. And I was feeling the exact same way as you. The _exact_ _same way…_ Except one main difference."

"What's that?" Sunshine asked weakly.

"I was a coward, Ronnie." He laughed. "Hell, I still am as you can see."

"You're not a coward, dad. You're a war veteran."

"That doesn't mean anything, son, believe me. Some of the most cowardly men I've some into contact with are still serving as commanding officers. That's one thing I've always been proud of about you, and envied about you. You're strong, Ronnie, beyond your years. And you've got your own mind. Not your old man. I saw everything you're seeing now. But I didn't want to be different. I knew it was wrong, but I couldn't say anything… I couldn't stand up. I couldn't be a man, Ronnie."

Sunshine couldn't believe his father's words, and was completely dumbstruck.

"What I said in the car," he finally continued, "that's just what I do under pressure. That's how I deal with things. Now, here's what I should've told you. Son, you know what's right. And if you know in your guy that what's going on isn't, then you change it. By any means. Times are changing, and if you think you're the man to catch this place up with the rest of the world, then I'm behind you completely."

"I dunno, I think I might shake this town up pretty bad, pop." Sunshine laughed.

"Well then you and the Titans just might have to rock the foundation then." Sunshine stood and embraced his father, both of their spirits lifted and both smiling.

**TBC**


	4. Chapter 4

_A/N: It's been a while. Don't lose faith in me! _

**Disclaimer**: Sorry, I don't own Remember the Titans or the characters, but I do own the ones that you've never heard of, because I made them up.

Summary: This story is a look into the slightly minor characters of RTT; Alan, Sunshine and Rev. Beyond football madness and into their more personal lives outside and inside of the team after the stadium lights shut off every week. Each one is an OC pairing.

**Beyond The Titans**

"Alan!" The young running back jumped, hearing his father roar from down the stairs. He grabbed his books and quickly ran down to the living room.

"Sir?"

"What in hell's name are you doin' boy, you're an hour late for school!" Alan sighed. It was his full intention not to go; T.C. Williams was the last place on earth he wanted to be. But his father would drag him down the street if he dared defy him, and high school seemed the lesser of two evils. In fact, any and everything did compared to the deacon.

"I'm on my way, sir—"

"On your _way_?" his father stood and yelled. Alan grabbed his car keys and headed toward the door, ignoring his dad's screaming. "My foot's on its way to the back of yo' spine if you don't get the hell outta here and down to that school house!"

Alan just closed the door behind him and threw his things in the backseat before pulling out of the driveway.

--

He had hardly paid attention to the road. His mind was so scattered that he began to perspire. He had flashbacks of the discussion his father had had with him the night before:

* * *

"_I'm transferrin' you to Hayfield." _

_Alan looked up from his plate. They had been eating silently, just as they always did, across from each other in the dining room. It was unlike him to speak during supper._

"_You're gonna start after the first gradin' quarter. Make it easier to transfer your grades." He spoke with firm finality. Alan was just about to speak when Stella came trotting in and sat down by him._

"_Goddamn it, Alan get that damned dog outta my house!" He hollered, slamming his palm down on the long table. Alan jolted out of his chair and grabbed the retriever by her collar, leading her to the back door._

"_Sorry, sweetheart." He mumbled, leading her out and sliding the glass door shut behind her. He turned and looked at his father, and rubbed his pant legs. Not knowing exactly what to say, he trudged back over to his seat and began playing absent-mindedly with his fork._

"_Transferrin', sir?" he barely peeped. He felt the deacon look up, but didn't meet his gaze._

"_That's what I said," He answered with his mouth full, "I ain't havin' no son of mine playin' for some Coach Coon."_

"_W—but I think I wanna play for T.C. Williams, sir," his father's eyes met his and his stomach turned into ice, "We'd still be playin' for Coach Yoast, he's assistin' Coach Boone," he managed to half-stutter._

"_Did you just talk back to me, boy?" he said, slowly standing and towering over his son," In my house? At my table?" Alan leaned back in his seat, trying his best to keep distance between him and the deacon._

"_No sir." He stuttered just before his father slammed his heavy arm into his throat, knocking him and his chair to the ground._

"_You're damned right, 'no sir'! You ain't playin' at no school where a white man _assists_ some nigger!" He spat down at Alan. He had knocked the wind out of him. The boy clutched his throat, his face was red, and he gasped for air. Once Alan began to cough his father retired to his room, leaving his son to gather himself._

_

* * *

_Alan snapped back into reality hearing multiple car horns blasting behind him. He pulled over quickly and rested his head on the steering wheel. He could recall clearly the first day of school when things began to unravel:

* * *

"_Bos-Baby!" Blue called as they piled into the school. "Where's your first class?"_

"_Physics, Ms. Dandridge!" He turned and answered, "Hey I gotta go; I'll see you guys at lunch!"_

"_Alright, hit them books, baby! Get that education!" Alan laughed, heading off to his first class._

"_Alan." The blonde turned, hearing his name called. He smiled seeing Daisy Thomas behind him._

"_Hey, sweetie." He kissed her forehead, but became worried when she shied away from him._

"_What's the matter?" he asked. She shook her head._

"_So it's true." His eyebrows furrowed above his blue eyes._

"_What is?"_

"_You! And _them_!" She whispered. "You're really friends with them now, Alan?"_

"_With my teammates? Yeah, I'm friends with them," he answered innocently, "What's wrong with that?"_

"'_What's wrong with it?' Alan, are you joking? Look around! Look where you are! Look in a mirror!" He scoffed and looked around, unable to believe what he was hearing._

"_You mean because they're colored."_

"_Yes, I do!" She sighed hopelessly. "What did they do to you at that camp?" _

"_They didn't _do _anything! Why are you actin' like this Daisy, you're my girlfriend! And they're my friends!"_

"_No." She said simply. Alan was struck dumb._

"_What do you mean 'no'? What's that supposed to mean, you're not my girlfriend anymore?" He said sarcastically. She looked up at him with tears filling her eyes and he froze. "What are you serious?" he asked finally, "You're gonna break up with me 'cause I have colored friends, now?" The petite redhead remained quiet. "No. Daisy, no. We're not—"_

"_I can't go through this, not now. You've changed, Alan." She said through tears, "I don't even know who are anymore. I'm sorry." She looked him in the eyes and rubbed his arm before walking away, ignoring him calling after her._

_

* * *

_Alan looked up again in the rearview mirror. His jaws were clenched to the point that they were the only white area of his otherwise crimson face. A vein protruded in his forehead; his cheeks were stained with unknowingly shed tears. He shuddered.

Helplessness was a feeling Alan Bosely had never experienced. But even as the seconds dragged like hours, as his breathing became more and more shallow, he knew; even as his heart began to beat erratically and he was forced to lean out of the window when his stomach upheaved violently into the street, he knew it could be nothing else. He was helpless. Peeling his hands from their death grip of the wheel, he wiped his eyes, unaware of the fact that he had been sitting there for a half hour. There was nothing for him, nowhere to run to, and no one to talk to.

Alan Bosely was not only helpless, he was alone.

Without looking or thinking he slammed on the gas and skidded into a U-turn, speeding down the road and away from T.C. Williams high school.

Alan wiped his eyes again, pulling up to the solitary grassy knoll marked with a single headstone. He inhaled deeply, shakily. It had been almost a year since he'd last been there, it was overwhelming him. When he finally did find his nerve, he exited his car, leaving the door open. He shoved his hands in his pockets, walking slowly to the headstone.

_Jane Bosely (1932-1969)_

"Hey, momma." His voice cracked through his smile.

**TBC**


End file.
